


Betas Bite

by Eris9703, Stujet9rainshine



Series: The Art of Running Away [1]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Arguing, Bar Fight, Beta Gavin, Beta Nines, Beta/Beta, Chronic Pain, Discrimination, First Dates, Graphic Depictions of Illness, Hopeful Ending, M/M, Making Out, Mating Bites, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Medical Procedures, Mental Health Issues, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Nurse Nines, Panic Attacks, Past Child Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Slurs, Slut Shaming, Trans Gavin Reed, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Unhealthy Relationships, Vaginal Fisting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-27
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:08:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24026368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eris9703/pseuds/Eris9703, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stujet9rainshine/pseuds/Stujet9rainshine
Summary: Betas aren't often noticed in society and when they are it's not often a good thing. Considered not Alpha or Omega enough. Being told they're faking one way or another. Just always being in the middle of a world made of opposites and when not falling on those defined ends is a crime.What happens when two betas meet in this world? When they've both seen the worst of it and have nothing left to lose?They bite.
Relationships: Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Series: The Art of Running Away [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1733164
Comments: 2
Kudos: 33





	1. Jericho

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stu: Well, it's finally here! Chapter one of this! 
> 
> Okay, so I built a whole new system and I made a google sheet for y'all to check out for the basic science rules of this world. Or you can go in blind. Up to you.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> [Here!](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1paCE054SqPSCQt4TpIP9UQqgoweGCwRFuVDbBjA5DOs/edit?usp=sharing)

Nines sighed as he parked his car. He wasn't in the best mood for Jericho, but he really needed a place and time to just relax. The hospital was exhausting and this month had been extra rough.

He got out of the car and started towards the building. He was still excited as he got closer to join the beta group and just hang out.

Nines walked through the door and some tension left his shoulders as he walked into a place he considered a safe space. He really liked it here, a place where secondary gender just didn't matter very much. Something he'd needed desperately after his life went to shit. After he was starting it all over.

Nines smiled brightly as he saw the Polycho, as everyone called the quad. "Hello, how is everything?" He greeted lightly and dived into small talk until the group meetings would start. He enjoyed this part too, having people he considered friends to talk to. And soon enough Nines was following Markus and Josh to the location for the beta only circle. 

These parts were also really nice, when the secondary genders spilt up to talk about the parts of life only other members of the same gender would understand. It was an hour of chatting and ranting about things that have happened, people opening up about their pasts. Basically a no strings attached group therapy session with people who could properly understand the struggles of also being your secondary gender. 

Nines sat in his usual chair, crossed his arms and legs and scanned the group. A couple of new faces, that was nice. That wasn't always the case. Maybe everyone would like his story he had prepared about an Omega patient he had to deal with over the last week.

Gavin grumbled with his arms crossed as Tina, his Abeta best friend since first grade pulled into the driveway of this big ass mansion aptly named 'Jericho.' The bitch had been bugging him all week that it was unhealthy for him to work until he dropped every day and that he 'needed to make some more friends that aren't me or your cats.' 

Bitch, his furry babies and a nice cup of joe (or Red Bull depending on the day) were all he needed! But _of course,_ like always, he ended up relenting after at least the 50th time she bugged him about it.

"Jesus Gavin, you're acting like a kid being taken to the dentist! It's not that bad!"

Gavin groaned, "Teen for fucks sake! You know I don't play well with others! Remember the last time I tried to make a friend?" Indeed, the last time he attempted to be nice and try to make a friend, the other dude ended up with his ass handed to him. Fucker deserved it.

"Gavin, you're going to make friends and that's final!" Oh no, she used her _mom voice_.

Gavin groaned again and muttered a "yes ma'am" under his breath as they both headed inside.

Gavin and Tina entered the mansion and _holy fuck_ it was even more massive on the inside! And holy shit was that a fucking _giraffe?!_

The obeta felt intimidated by this place. Tina had gone off to chat with some pretty redhead that reeked of female alpha. Gavin sneered, the only thing worse than an asshole male alpha was a female alpha. He internally gagged. _Fucking alphas!_ He thought to himself bitterly.

He spent the rest of the time before the meeting looking at the decor of the joint. So, this was what artsy, fartsy, rich people spend their cash on?

Gavin internally groaned and finally made his way over to the circle of betas. 

When he made his way over, it appeared all the seats were taken except for the one next to possibly the hottest guy he'd ever seen! Dammit, why did he have to be so gay? 

He reluctantly sat down next to Mr. Tall Drink of Water, who was apparently an Abeta based on his powerful cedarwood scent.

Nines glanced over to the new face that took the open seat next to him. He gave him as subtle a once over as he could. He was an extremely handsome man, and he fucking smelled like an aphoristic. Then again, Nines had always loved chocolate.

He swallowed and forced all of that to the back of his mind. This wasn't the place to hit on the first handsome Obeta he sees and smells. He turned his attention back to Markus and Josh as to not being caught staring, because he very well could stare if he'd let himself.

This Abeta with the smell of cedarwood would be the death of Gavin. Just sitting next to him was making him feel like he could melt. He did his best not to seem like he was checking this guy out, but heaven forbid if he wasn't sneaking peaks. Perhaps he could go to these meetings after all if it meant he could possibly get to be this close to this fine specimen.

Nines almost felt like the Obeta next to him was stealing glances at him and he quickly reprimanded himself for such a wishful way of thinking. Wow, he must be needier than he thought he was. 

_No one would be interested in you of all people don't fool yourself._

Despite Nines' constant belittling himself for his interest, he found himself extremely interested in knowing more about him. So, he listened very closely when it was the Obeta's turn to introduce himself and talk.

It wasn't long until the Abeta with the green and blue eyes called on Gavin to start his little introduction. He was so busy ogling the fine ass Abeta next to him to think of anything to say. Here goes nothing. 

"Uh, hey! The name’s Gavin Reed. I was kinda dragged here because by my bitch of a best friend," he pointedly looked in her direction over on the other side of the circle where said bestie was flipping him off with the sweetest face she could muster. "Said that I 'need to make some more friends besides me and your cats,' which is bullshit cuz cats are all you need. But anyway I'm a homicide detective and I'm an Obeta if that wasn't already apparent."

Gavin was a nice name and it suited the gruff man, Nines thought. The fact that he was an Obeta and a homicide detective was downright amazing. It also brought back a wave of bitterness about his brother wanting to do that as well but would rather be a paid whore when the going got tough. Too bad he couldn't show this man to Connor. That would be quite the reunion.

"Well, We're glad you decided to join us," Markus said with a warm smile, "And as amazing as cats are, human friends are nice as well."

"I guess," Gavin scoffed. Cats were better than people in his honest opinion. He tucked his head a bit to avoid talking anymore. 

He was more interested in the hot guy who was up next and fuck, was Gavin going to be listening intently.

Markus chuckled, and turned towards Nines. "Your turn."

Nines shrugged. "As many of you know, I'm Nines. Yes, like the number. I'm an Abeta and I work as an RN in the ER. Being a beta nurse is a trip, as many of you already know."

Gavin perked up. An Abeta nurse? Shit, that was impressive! His name might be a bit odd, but he'd be calling him so many other names if he could get this man into his bed.

Josh raised an eyebrow, "Have any fun _anonymous_ stories for us this month?"

Markus and everyone else tried to not look as interested, because his stories were pretty popular.

"As a matter of fact I do," Nines chirped happily, "We had this omega come in for some facial ablations, nothing too serious. But you could guess where they got them from since they worked in the sex trade and that leads to nothing good for anyone but..."

Wait, he knew he wasn't hearing what he thought he was hearing right? Surely this man wasn't about to talk shit at a poor sex worker's expense. He took it all back, this guy was a fucking prick.

"Oh? So you think an omega getting assaulted for doing their fucking job is funny?” He interrupted the smug bastard's story.

Nines felt his face colour and turned to look at Gavin. "That's not what I was saying at all. I was just providing background knowledge to the situation." He defended himself quickly. That really had come out of left field.

Gavin scoffed. "Oh, _sure_ you were. Well, it sure as fuck didn't sound like it when you were victim shaming the omega for being a sex worker. You'd think as a beta you'd know how hard it is for omegas and betas to find employment in most fields because of the heavy discrimination against us. A lot of our people have no choice but to work the streets to survive!"

Nines bristled, "Oh, yes. Because being a sex worker is easier than toughing it out through school, and just getting over yourself."

"Have you ever stopped to think that not everyone is even given the opportunity to succeed in the career they go for? You may have managed to 'tough it out' as you say, but not everyone can take the constant abuse and harassment. And besides that, sex work is just much of a valid career as nursing! And to claim otherwise is a toxic _as fuck!"_

Nines flushes both from embarrassment and a hearty dose of rage. 

_Manners, don't let this get too out of hand._

"No, sex work is created as a way abuse the less fortunate and for people to prey on others. It's a career made for the weak _on both sides,"_ He snarled.

Okay, now Gavin was pissed! **_"Weak?!_** If there's one thing sex workers aren't its weak! A good 80 percent of my informants are in the sex industry and let me tell you, those people are some of the strongest people I have ever met! They work on the streets to provide for themselves in a world where if you're not an alpha you have no power and if you're not an omega you serve no use to an alpha! Sex workers own their sexuality and are far more tough than any of us will **_ever_** be! They have to grin and bear being looked at like freaks and treated like utter garbage by society and being judged and looked down upon by self righteous fuckwhits like **_you_** who don't have the slightest fucking clue about what the fuck they're talking about!"

Nines turned to look at Gavin in the eyes. Several rageful emotions boiling in the icy blue. "I know plenty about the sex industry, for your information. Doesn't mean I have to like it or the people who do it."

Suddenly a young woman spoke up tears rolling down her face and a look of betrayal. "Oh? So you don't like me, huh?" Her voice was full of venom. "It's people like you that make me terrified to tell anyone about my job! I thought you were different, but you're just as an asshole like everyone else!"

Nines felt all the colour drain from his face and horror crawl into his heart. "Traci... I... didn't..." The safety in this place he'd work so hard to establish was slipping from his fingers. 

_Carol is going to be so disappointed in you._

Then he stood up and pointed a finger at Gavin's face. "You don't know anything about my life or my opinions. _Fuck you!"_ He choked up and made a move to leave the circle. Mortified.

Gavin stood up out of his chair and grabbed the taller man and spun him around. "Oh no, you don't! You don't get to play the victim and cry crocodile tears because your ass just got called out!" Gavin was fucking livid and this fucker had the audacity to try and walk away from this? _Oh, hell fucking no!_

There was a bit of a clatter around the pair of betas as Nines was physically grabbed by Gavin.

_"Don't you_ ** _fucking touch me!"_** Nines screamed as he retched out of Gavin's grip. "You can fuck off with your apologist attitude. I don't come here to get attacked!"

There was a clatter of chaos as everyone reacted to the outburst from Nines. He was considered one of most calm people in the entirety of Jericho. To see him explode in such a way was extremely jarring.

"Oh, you don't get to play the victim! You're the one who with the massive hate boner for sex workers! That mentality is disgusting and you should be ashamed of yourself! Your ‘opinion’ is the besognist bullshit that gets betas killed!"

Nines snarls, "Sex works gets betas killed!" He can feel himself shaking and his face burning with the emotions. "And it makes parents that fucking suck and ruins fucking lives. Get off my fucking back!"

"For your fucking information my mom was a sex worker and she was a damn fine parent at that! Quit projecting!"

"Well, mine fucking left me!" Nines grabbed Gavin by the collar, snarling, "congratulations on your perfect fucking life! Now leave me the fuck alone, you absolute _bitch."_

Gavin could handle insults thrown at him, he could handle being called any slur, but _no one_ laid their hands on him and got away with it. He was seeing red and anyone who knew him could see the primal rage in his eyes before he would snap.

Tina noticed that the situation was about two seconds from exploding. "North, help me break this apart before Gavin kills that guy."

North nodded quickly and moved to grab Nines and Tina moved to grab Gavin. 

Nines went easily but wrenched away from North's grip. "Don't _fucking_ touch me."

Needless to say the situation devolved even further from there. Gavin fought against Tina to get to Nines and Nines was looking like he was barely keeping it together while trying to get away from North.

Tina eventually managed to calm Gavin down enough for them to leave without causing any more damage. Though he stormed the fuck out of the mansion and slammed the door so hard the room shook with Tina following behind apologizing before leaving.

Nines finally managed to get North to fucking let him go. He was bright red and his hair was a mess. 

_Get yourself back together!_

Nines agitatedly fixed his clothes. He couldn't believe that had just happened. This was his fucking _safe place!_ And that guy had the fucking nerve to come here and attack him like that!? Though the fierce attitude was a bit of a mask, he knew he was being a complete bastard. But he wouldn't dare voice that aloud, he had to be perfect.

He finally looked around and everyone was visibly uncomfortable. And staring at him like he was some sort of monster. **_"What?"_** He barked, defensive.

North was enraged, he could tell. "You're a fucking douche bag. That's what's what." 

Markus put a hand on her shoulder. "Yes, that was extremely uncalled for and we're frankly very surprised by your behavior."

Nines felt his eyes widen in fear. "Wait? You think I'm the one in the wrong here?"

"Yes, because you fucking are!" North growled.

Markus and Josh nodded along with her.

Simon stepped forward and wrung his hands, "Maybe it's best you leave and take a break from Jericho for a while."

Nines' world stopped. "Wait. You're kicking me out? Over that? I didn't... _you can't."_

"We can and we are," North confirmed, "get out." She pointed at the door.

Nines stumbled back. All his friends were here. This... This is where he went to escape. This was his fucking life line and he was being thrown to the sharks.

_Look at that. You couldn't keep it together even in front of your friends, maybe it is best that you leave… before things can get any worse._

**_"Fuck,"_ **he screamed as he started towards the door, hoping that no one would see his tears.


	2. Booze and Bruises

Gavin sat at the bar nursing a mug of the cheapest beer they had on tap after a long shift. The alcoholic lieutenant was late to work again and so he had to do the fucker's paperwork because the Captain was butt buddies with the drunkard, if he had to guess. If the fucker was going to drag the entire department down with him, he might as well just fucking quit! 

The o beta  sighed out his nose before taking another swig of his mug.  He was done with this day already.

Nines had  just pulled a 48-hour shift and he wanted to  up and die. Carol had heard about his episode at Jericho and was giving him the cold shoulder. He had been sure he would piss off his best and only friend with his behaviour, but it still felt awful to be ignored.

He couldn't bring himself to go home to be alone  and chasing the bottom of the bottle  was as good a plan as any.

He started his way towards the  B eta  O nly bar he went to every once in a while.  One of the few places he wouldn't likely be bothered at.

Nines walked through the door and made a beeline for the bar and ordered a whiskey neat  as soon as he was settled.

Gavin only barely noticed the man ordering his first drink of the night. He was in his own  little world.

After the incident at Jericho, he'd been angry, embarrassed, and all-around miserable. He wanted so badly to just disappear. After he was dropped off and Tina had apologized for the 100th time, he'd gone into his apartment, chucked off his clothes, and dived into his bed where he'd proceeded to cry himself to sleep. He still wasn't exactly on speaking terms with his best friend at the moment so here he sat alone at the bar and drinking because he didn't wanna go home yet.

Nines knocked back the alcohol and ordered another one and sighed as he leaned forward on the bar stool. God, how was he such a fuck up?

_ That's a simple reason. You're you. _

Nines sighed and he rubbed at his eyes. He just wanted to disappear for a little bit.

Gavin looked up from his half-empty beer mug for the  first time in what seemed like hours and  laid eyes on the last person he  would have like d to see. It was that  fucking douchebag from the Jericho meeting.  _ Super. _

He sighed audibly. "Oh god, it's you," he said with disdain. He made his way to pay his tab and get the fuck out of there.

Nines’ whole body had twitched when he heard  _ that _ voice and all he felt was rage. He absolutely was not in the mood for this. "God-fucking-damnit," he growled. "You here to ruin this for me too, you short fuck?"

"You gonna be a douchebag  _ again?" _ Gavin growled back. Goddammit,  first the Jericho incident and now this!? Was the whole world trying to get him thrown in prison for punching a bitch in the face?

"I've got nothing to lose thanks to you," Nines growled right back, bristling. "And I'd love to finish what we started last time, you asshole."  His hands were itching for a fight and this felt like the perfect way to get some tension released. He'd never been one to start violence but he was at the end of his rope and he needed to get it out. Who better to subject that rage to than the man that had ruined so much for him.

"Well, bring it  _ bitch! _ I've laid out bigger fuckers than you with my eyes closed!" Well,  looks like they were doing this. Why did he have to inherit his father's temper and his mom's big mouth?

Nines snarled and reacted instantly and picked Gavin up by his lapels and chucked him across the bar. Not giving him two seconds to react.  He'd had just enough of being walked on and abused and embarrassed. This bastard broke the last fucking straw.  "Bring it on, then you fucking  **faketa!"** This fight was 28 years coming.

Gavin landed on a table , where a group of friends were celebrating. He got soaked by martinis and pitchers of Coors in the process. He recovered quickly and looked to the soon-to-be-dead son of a bitch across the bar. 

"Oh, it's on, you _knotless_ piece of shit," Gavin growled. He grabbed the nearest chair and ran at the larger man full force. He slammed the chair down on the fucker's head with full force. 

This obeta was out for blood.

Nines was promptly knocked in the face with a  chair , but that was fucking nothing. He'd been hit with far worse in his time. And hell, he'd been hit with a  fucking chair before.

He roared as he shoved past the now broken chair.  "You’d like to know, wouldn't you?" Nines purred angrily as he regained his footing and went to punch Gavin  directly in the face.

Gavin managed to dodge and threw a punch himself launching Nines over the bar and causing a bunch of shit to fall on him. "Not from you, you knotless faketa bitch!"

There was chaos as Nines smashed into the bar. People were reacting to the fight, which wasn't common in an all beta environment. Especially one with so much blatant anti-beta sentiments.

"Good, wouldn't want a fucking fake O, either!" Nines launched himself back to his feet and charged forward with the full force towards Gavin's middle.

The advantage of being below average height was that he was faster and more agile in his movements. So, he managed to avoid the blow and trip the man. He jumped on the abeta and slammed his head into the floor by his hair.

Nines wasn't expecting to be grappled but now that he was on the floor he felt he could get the upper hand. He was knocked silly but he was still able to wail on Gavin's middle and face, wherever he could hit. He was just angry and wanted to finally punish someone that hurt him and took something from him.

It went around like that for a while with Gavin getting a few hits in on Nines face and middle as well as putting him into sleeper hold a few times. He didn't start fights, but he sure as fuck finished them and he was going to do just that on this fucker. Maybe knock him down a peg or two in the process.

Nines hadn't expected Gavin to put up such a fucking hard fight, but he was going to leave here victorious or in a fucking stretcher. While focusing on the fight and rage at hand. He hadn't  even noticed the bartender had called the cops. Nor did he hear the sirens over the rushing in his ears. 

But he did notice after he landed an extra brutal punch onto Gavin's face,  one where he finally felt something give. When he was pulled away from the other man by several strong hands.

Gavin didn't notice the cops had been called until he saw a few of his fellow cops pulling Nines off of him. And then reality hit him like a brick. 

_ 'I'm so fucking fired,' _ he thought with a sinking dread. Next thing he knew he was forcefully flipped over by Chris and cuffed. "Hey Chris... How's the kiddo?"

Chris sighed and pulled Gavin by the cuffs. "Damien is fine. Much better than you're gonna be when Fowler finds you in the holding tank."

All Gavin could do was nod. The man wasn't wrong after all. He’d be lucky to escape this with probation and the cost of damages for the bar being taken from his next few paychecks. "You don't say." 

Nines was pulled up by the cuff by a bigger man and he went easily. He was pretty dizzy. "Fuck," he muttered. He sniffed, and felt way too much sticky blood on his face. From both his nose and his right ear. He definitely looked like the loser in this fight , but t hat wasn't anything new. 

"Evening officer," he said thickly,  the taste of blood on his tongue. It almost felt like welcoming an old friend home.

The cop cuffing Nines merely read him his Miranda Rights and shoved him in his car without even giving him a passing glance. 

Nines sneered at the stupid and haunty alpha. As a nurse he was disgusted that no one checked out his injuries. He was certain he had a concussion. God, this fucking day sucked.

Chris was much nicer as he put Gavin the back of the car, his rights read to him. After they were on the road Chris looked up at him in the mirror. "So? Why were you beating the fuck out of a giant abeta in a bar?"

Gavin sighed,  deciding not to waste time and got straight to the point. "Well, a few days ago Tina dragged me to this support group called Jericho, cuz she said I needed more friends or some shit. Well, I was sitting next to tall, dark, and douchey. And hell, I thought he was even cute until he started spouting this ignorant ass shit about sex workers. I called his ass out and he didn't like that so he proceeded to be even more of a dick. I nearly kicked his ass then, but Tina held me back before I could. Well guess who I ran into." Gavin winced. Fuck, his head was killing him.  He rolled his eyes and gestured with his cuffed hands.  "Well, this fucker decided it was my fault his buddies kicked him out of their club or whatever so  _ he  _ started the fight and I was about to finish it before you guys showed up."

Looking up into the rear view mirror he definitely had a black eye and his nose was definitely broken.  _ Fuck me. _

Chris whistled. "So, you didn't start this one for once." He took a turn, "He actually looks like he gave you a run for your money. You okay?"

Gavin shrugged. "I've had worse." And indeed he had. This was nothing compared to his days at the academy.  _ Ah, good times. _ "Turns out all of those muscles weren't just for show."

"Only you, Reed," Chris  mused as he parked at the prescient. "I wouldn't want to cross that big guy if I could avoid it. But I'm glad you're okay. I just hope Fowler doesn't go too crazy on you. He was off tonight but is coming back in just for you." He got out of the car and guided Gavin out of the back and towards the inside and towards the processing area.  "He even had a date with his mate if I remember correctly."

"Phck," Gavin groaned. That meant he was even in deeper shit. Fowler didn't get a lot of time off with his little Nbeta mate.

Gavin was quickly processed before being put into a holding  cell with the very fucker who landed him there. He pointedly sat at the very opposite end of it and refused to look at the guy.

~

Nines was tired and he fucking hurt  everywhere. He'd had to threaten the cops within an inch of their lives to get his fucking head looked at. He had a concussion just like he  had insisted. Heaven forbid the  _ beta _ nurse knew what he was talking about. 

Now he was in a cell for at least a day. And as tired as he fucking was after being awake for over 50 hours, he couldn't sleep because of his stupid fucking concussion.  He could technically, but he was without someone to care for him. 

Then to top it all off Gavin was thrown into the cell with him. He was absolutely miserable. _ "Fuuuuuuuck."  _ He groaned dramatically simply because he fucking could.

_ "Oh! _ Quit your bellyaching!" Gavin yelled to the abeta across the cell from him. He was dealing with a migraine from hell because of his concussion and he couldn't breath out of his nose due to it being fucking broken and hurting  like a bitch. He should've just gone home after his shift was over.  Then again drinking alone in his empty apartments with only his cats to judge him felt extra pathetic. 

"Fuck you. I can bitch if I fucking want to," Nines growled, "What are you gonna do about  it? Ruin more of my fucking day? Punch me  some more? Get bent."

"Wasn't it you who started that fight, genius?" Gavin growled in pain and annoyance, "Because of you I could lose my fucking job!"

Nines had sighed, he had. "Yeah, I guess I did." He rubbed at his sore face. "I'm too fucking tired and pissed off to fucking care. And I was supposed to do a turn around tomorrow. Yippee." He did sad jazz hands.

"Well, you've only got yourself to blame for being an ass," Gavin said, getting more comfortable. "Fuck, I could use a smoke."

Nines sneered, "well, take this as an opportunity. Smoking is fucking awful for you and everyone that's ever around you."

Gavin rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry, I don't remember asking for your opinion!"

Nines glared, "well, I didn't ask for your opinion at Jericho, if I remember correctly, you  goddamned prick."

"If it wasn't me who called your toxic ass out it would've been someone else," Gavin pointed out matter of factly. "Like that blue haired chick, what was her name, Traci?"

Nines glared. "Traci, is correct. And if you'd actually let me finish my fucking story, you'd know that I wasn't being as much of an asshole as you made me out to be."

_ "Sure,  _ you weren't," Gavin said dismissively. The mental gymnastics this bitch was doing to avoid admitting he was  in the wrong was astounding.

Nines huffed, "Yes, believe it or not. I don't make a habit of being a complete cunt to people I care about."  One might even call him a doormat. 

"Mhm," Gavin hummed in the affirmative noncommittally. Honestly, he could care less at this point about this guy's bullshit. He was just bracing himself for the verbal whipping he  was going to get when Fowler  got there.

But Nines didn't want to let this go. "You don't even know how much you fucked up my life do you? You don't even _ care. _ You saw something you deemed bad and attacked. Not caring about the carnage you left in your wake. Well, fuck you for making an ass out of me and getting me kicked out of the only safe place I've ever had."

Gavin sighed and looked directly over at Nines for the first time since being locked in  here with him. "Nines,  listen, just stop,  _ alright? _ Throughout the whole time I've known you, I've noticed you always blame others for your problems. But the truth is that you brought all of this on yourself. No one else made you do any of this, you did. Take responsibility for your actions."

Nines barely heard anything Gavin had just said, only one phrase echoed around in his head. 

_ You brought this all on yourself. Think about what you've done. _

He had been instantly thrown out of that jail cell into somewhere much more sinister. The cold hard voice of his mother echoed around the smell of blood and his own terrified smell. The horror of another one of his 'treatments.' It was somewhere much more horrifying than and any jail cell could ever be.

_ Stop acting like this about it and take responsibility. Let me fix you.  _ _ Make you into someone worth something. _

Then the horror of the ghostly feeling of a needle and the medication flowing through his veins.  The threat of violence if he resisted crackling in the air around him. 

Little did he know that in the jail cell he had stopped breathing and a few silent tears ran down his face.  The gravity of everything he'd done over the last  few days finally slammed into him. Oh, he'd fucked up.

Gavin sat up straight after seeing the tears rolling down the taller man's face and the completely blank, yet horrified expression. It was unnerving and he felt the urge to say something despite what a prick he had been. He looked so fucking scared. "Nines? Nines, are you okay?" he asked hesitantly. Did he break him? What the fuck was going on? 

Nines didn't respond. He definitely wasn't okay. A full-on panic attack was overtaking him. But he wasn't really aware of Gavin talking to him.  He just wanted to disappear.  He hated having to relive those memories. He hated these fucking flashbacks.

Gavin eventually realized that this guy was having a  panic attack of  some sort. It looked like he'd have to use his training for handling  situations like these. It was the one good thing he got out of the academy. 

"Nines, whatever you're feeling is scary, but it's not real,"  Gavin cooed. He found this whole situation kind of ironic. This man had probably an hour ago tried to beat the shit out of him. Now? He's having a panic attack in their shared jail cell and Gavin was comforting him. How the tables have turned.

Nines blinked a bit as the memories started to fade out, but that just caused tears to flow harder and he swallowed on reflex. He hated this. Why couldn't he just escape this?  He hated feeling so weak, it had been  _ years. _ Couldn't he just get over himself?

Gavin slowly placed a hand on Nines shoulder comfortingly. "Concentrate on your breathing, stay on the present."

That pulled Nines out finally as he lurched away from the touch violently. Slamming into the corner of the wall.  _ "Don't touch me!"  _ His voice was strangled around the fear. Then he made a choked noise and tears poured down his face even harder. He panted, his smell quickly giving away how terrified he was.  He tangled his hands into his hair and just mumbled, "don't hurt me."  He was somewhere between jail and the prison of his past.

_Shit!_ Gavin had forgotten he wasn't supposed to touch someone who's having a panic attack. He slowly moved closer to Nines, but still maintained enough distance. "Okay, Nines. I'm going to need you to match my breathing, okay?"

Nines was stubborn and almost stopped breathing defiantly. He didn't want to be here. And he was so goddamn tired.  God, he hadn't changed much since he was a teenager, huh?

"It's okay, Nines, it's not real. You're at the precinct," Gavin said continuing to talk him through it. If he couldn't do anything else, talking would have to do. And so he did  that.

Nines blinked and finally started breathing  properly again.

After a few minutes of deep breaths and the smell of his mother and fake alpha faded away he could finally see where he was again. Nines' hands went to his face and rubbed at it. "Fuck," he groaned, "I don't know if jail is an improvement."  He was deflecting, embarrassed. 

Gavin chuckled at that. "Well, it might not be all that great, but it definitely sounds better than where you were." He offered a crooked sympathetic smile.

"You can say that again," Nines confirmed quietly. "Goddamnit. I haven't done that in a while. Sorry, if I freaked you out." His cocky and angry attitude had melted away and now he was just a sheepish and awkward man. Who he normally was.

"Don't worry about it," Gavin said dismissively. "I'm a cop, it's literally in my job description."

"That's fair enough," Nines echoed, "But I will say it's not encouraged for nurses to beat people up in bars. So, you're doing better than me."

"In all fairness, I should've just detained your ass instead of participating in said bar fight," Gavin added. "And you know I won that fight."

Nines sighed once more, it was one of those sighs that he could feel came from a very tired part of his soul. "That's no surprise. I don't win fights."

Gavin suddenly felt like a tool for being such an ass to this guy.  That was the voice of a broken man, Gavin just ended on the wrong side of him finally lashing out.  Didn't make what happened okay, but everyone had a limit.  "And hey, I'm sorry for getting you in trouble with your friends... I just can't stand it when people talk shit about sex workers."

"It's okay... I was going to ruin it on my own sooner or later anyway." Nines cringed. He rea lly didn't need to throw himself a pity party, but that was how he really felt. "And I respect that. I guess... I just have some personal... issues with sex workers... and I need to work on that. But fuck... my life would have been so fucking different if they weren't a thing."

"I guess I could understand that, but just cuz you have issues involving something doesn't give you the right to be a dick."

Nines flushed, "I really wasn't trying to be a dick. I was... Just trying to be funny."

"Sometimes the shit you think is funny hurts others," Gavin got up from the floor and ordered Nines a hand. "Need a hand?"

"I know. I will try to be less of an asshole prick." Then Nines noticed Gavin's offered hand and his unbearable exhaustion. He buried his face in his hands, "I think I am physically incapable of moving at the moment."

Gavin took back his hand. "No big deal! You move when you feel strong enough! As for now," He plopped down next to the Abeta, "I'll stay on the floor so ya don't feel stupid."

Nines flushed, "that... That is oddly kind of you." He looked away. "And I've been nothing but a fucking douchebag to you... I'm sorry."

Gavin shrugged. "And I haven't been any better so I think that makes us even."

Nines nodded. "Yeah, I guess so." He gave Gavin's face a serious look over. "But I definitely broke your nose. Would you like me to set it?"

"Yeah... that would be great," Gavin admitted,  taken aback. It would hurt like a mother fucker, but it was better than the pain he was currently in while trying to breathe.  He was more surprised how quickly the course of their interactions was changing. Nines was suddenly softening.

"Could you move a little closer, then?" Nines lifted his hands up and despite their obvious shaking, he could set a simple broken nose with his eyes closed.

Gavin moved a bit closer and presented his face to him.  Hoping this wouldn't backfire, fuck, he trusted too easily. 

Nines reached out and noticed that Gavin already had several nasty scars on his face and one right on the bridge of his nose. Beer bottle, his experience told him easily. He shook his head and returned his focus to the task at hand.

"This is gonna fucking hurt," Nines warned before he swiftly reset Gavin's broken nose.

**"PHCK!"** Gavin screamed through clenched teeth. After a few deep breaths and wiping away tears from the pain, he finally spoke again. "Thanks! Fuck, that never gets any easier."

"You're welcome. And isn't that the truth?" Nines smiled. "I really am sorry I broke your nose though."

"No biggie! I busted your lip real good so we're good," Gavin chuckled.

Nines nodded,  he didn't consider that an equivalent exchange, but he kept his mouth shut on that. Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth. "Do you think we could start this whole thing over? You seem cool enough and we may be in here for a while."

"Tell ya what, if I manage to not get fired after this, sure." Perhaps this guy wasn't so bad after all. He could get used to this. Everyone had their flaws,  and a sincere apology was enough for Gavin to move past their altercation.

"Sounds fair," Nines agreed. Then there was a moment of Nines just smiling before there were a loud banging and stomping.

"Reed!" A deep male voice called out.

"Oh fuck here he comes " Gavin groaned. "Guess we'll get to find out sooner than we thought  about whether or not I'm gonna be jobless." He gave Nines a reassuring smile.

Nines swallowed nervously as he saw a giant black man with his hands on his hips. He looked very clearly pissed.

"I can't believe I had to cancel on my mate for you beating the fuck out of this guy. Now get the fuck over here."

"Yes sir," Gavin said as he followed the Captain.

Fowler cuffed Gavin before he started taking him out of the cell. "I technically don't have to do this, but I'm going to anyway. Now I'm taking you to an interrogation room And you're gonna talk. Understood?"

Nines watched as Gavin was led out and was quite fearful for both Gavin and for when it was his turn.

Gavin let himself get led to  Interrogation Room A knowing he was in for a rough time. He sat at the table and waited for the questions.

Fowler sat down and frowned as he rubbed at his temples. "Well, you know today was my day off first off right?"

"Yeah... sorry about that. I wasn't really expecting to get into a bar fight."

"I bet you weren't," Fowler drew out, "so, am I going to have to drag this out of you question by question or are you just gonna start from the beginning?"

Gavin sighed. "Well, might as well get it over with, right?" He then told the whole story from start to finish. Nothing left out, no bullshit.

Fowler whistled, "You really managed to piss that guy off, huh?" He leaned forward, "Well, let me cut to the chase. Do you want to press charges? Because I do actually trust you and if I get the same story from Mr. Stern, you can have him held for assault or if you're feeling bitter, assaulting an officer."

Gavin shook his head. "I'm not pressing charges. We sorta hashed out this whole mess in the holding cell. I mean damn the guy even set my broken nose! That's gotta count for something, right?"

Fowler was amazed, usually, Gavin would be snarling to have the guy punished as harshly as the law would allow. But he wasn't going to press. "Okay, well. He did a good job, if i can tell by the way the swelling is going down." Another long sigh, "Let's get you out of here and processed. But don't let anything like this happen ever again. I can't have you getting into fights in bars, makes you and me look bad. Am I understood?"

"You got it, chief!" Gavin said with a big grin. He would've saluted to add to the novelty, but alas his hands were still cuffed. He followed the Captain out of Interrogation Room A so he could finally get out of there. Fowler quickly got Gavin released and despite everything, Gavin still left with only a write-up, which is fair all things considered. 

Once Gavin got through all that he was uncuffed and to leave. However, he still had something to do.

"I'm going to start on some paperwork before I interrogate Mr. Stern. You go home and get that fucking nose looked at again. Goodnight, Reed."

"Thanks again," Gavin said back before heading straight to the holding cell. He had to at least let Nines know he survived the interrogation without being murdered or fired. 

Then he went to the holding cell and he was greeted with an unexpected sight. Nines was still in the last spot he was before but he was asleep.  His head lolled to the side rested against the wall, his mouth slightly open. He was probably snoring softly.

_ 'Poor guy,' _ Gavin thought. Didn't he mention something about being awake for 50 hours? No wonder he passed out like that. It was after that though that he realized something, Nines was cute when he slept.  All that tension he carried while awake had melted away. The way he curled up in his sleep, his calm face making him appear youthful.  Gavin almost didn't want to wake him, but he needed to let him know he was okay. He knocked on the bulletproof glass to wake him up.

Nines hadn't remembered falling asleep, but he did remember being jolted awake by a loud tapping noise. He moved too quickly and then his head swam. "Fuck," He mumbled he shouldn't have fallen asleep like this. He rubbed his face and looked up at the source of the noise. It was Gavin and he was tapping on the glass and he was even giving him a small wave. 

"I see you're still standing," Nines said in a gravelly voice, rough from sleep.

"Yeah," Gavin chuckled at Nines' sleepy voice. "Well, I just thought I'd let you know that I'm alive and only got off with a write-up. Oh, and by the way, I didn't press charges so you should be fine."

"Thanks," Nines let out a sigh of relief and nodded, "I know you didn't have to do that. And I'm glad you didn't get into too much trouble for my asinine behaviour."

"Yeah, no kidding," Gavin smirked. "Well, I still have my job so allow me to reintroduce myself. Hi, I'm Gavin Reed, nice to meet ya!"

Nines blushed for some reason at that, but he looked up and offered a tiny smile. "Hi, Gavin. I'm  Richard 'Nines' Arkait, nice to meet you too."

_ 'God fucking dammit why is he so cute?' _ Gavin couldn't  prevent a small blush forming on his cheeks and ears. "So... wanna exchange numbers? S-so we can keep in touch cuz that's what friends do right?" Gavin internally kicked himself.  _ 'This is no time to be a gay disaster, Reed!' _

Nines blinked, "Yes, I suppose we could." He looked around, trying to tell if he was still dreaming or not. Or if this was some kind of trick. 

"You'd have to take mine. As I don't have my phone at the minute." He really hoped this wouldn't backfire on him .

"Yeah, sure! Just give me your number and I'll text you later tonight," Gavin managed to say without stammering. His poor heart was beating out of his chest.

Nines rattled off the number and watched as Gavin put it in his phone. "And hopefully I'll be out of here by the end of the night. I  still have to go in to work at 10 in the morning."

"Shit, I hope you do! I'm really sorry for wailing on ya and getting you locked up in here," Gavin rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"I started the fight, don't worry about it so much," Nines said gently, "I'm just thankful you're not making them keep me in here."  That would sure put a damper on years of progress of making his life, well, his.

"Nah, after all, you apologized and set my broken nose. I'd be a fucking tool if I still pressed charges," Gavin said as if it was obvious.

Nines didn't agree or disagree out loud at least. Gavin  _ really _ should have pressed charges against him.  He had so many talks to patients over the years over talking to the police and pressing charges, getting restraining orders, hiring lawyers, and providing resources. Why had this turned out so different! Gavin really should have left him out to dry.  Sure, he set Gavin's nose. But he was also the person who broke it in the first place. 

"Apologies aren't exactly worth too much after the damage is done. But I appreciate it nonetheless," Nines finally settled on.

"No problem! All Fowler is gonna do is ask you what happened and then get you processed and then you'll be on your way."

Nines nodded and smiled weakly, the guilt of what had transpired finally really setting in. "Thanks. You probably need to get home and get some sleep? I'm sure I'll be out soon... I await your message."

"Yeah no kidding," Gavin offered a reassuring smile. "You be safe getting home, I'll text you before I hit the hay tonight."

Nines nodded, "Goodnight, Gavin." Then he gave a small wave.

"Goodnight, Nines," Gavin said softly before offering his own small wave and heading out of the precinct to call a cab home. Maybe this day wasn't too bad after all.

Nines felt tension building his shoulders as he was left alone again. Part of him doubted that Gavin would text or that he'd actually get out. But that was okay, there was only so poorly this could go for him.

Then when a man by the name of Captain Fowler took him back for questioning, he was completely honest with the man. For once that earned his favour and after around 30 minutes in the interrogation room and a firm 'Don't punch my officers ever again or you're gonna be in a cell for a long time.'

Then Nines was processed and left the prescient, calling a taxi home. Praying he could get at least three hours of sleep before his shift tomorrow.


	3. Text Messages and Black Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stu: Just...know these two are fucking dumbasses.

When Nines woke up, he had two black eyes and a piercing migraine. Getting in bar fights and getting arrested is never going to be on his  **To-Do** list ever again. Especially not after a 48-hour shift.

He reached out and grabbed his phone to silence it and looked at only a few emails from work. His heart sank. He doesn't know why Gavin not texting him bothered him so much. But it sure fucking did.  Maybe this was for the best.

He had slept like shit, which was remarkable considering just how tired he was. He shoved all the feelings of rejection he had back down into his bottle. This kind of feeling was selfish and he couldn't afford that. No one deserved that from him.

He had to get ready for work and today that included putting on some makeup,  which he knew would take some time.

Nines was around 15 minutes late to his shift and that was virtually unheard of, but considering he almost called in. It was a miracle he was here at all.  He worked too much.

He walked up to the nurses' station to clock in and he groaned under his breath as he saw he was walking up to Carol. Oh, he didn't want to explain any of this.

Carol caught movement in her periphery and turned to see Nines walking up to her.  Her eyes immediately went to his complexion.  "What the hell have you done to your face?" She asked him with eyes wide in horror.

"I lost a fight with a table," Nines said coolly as he walked up the computer and clocked in.  It wasn’t even technically a lie. He was hoping she'd drop it.

"I was talking about that foundation. It's not even your color, but that definitely explains your hasty purchase of the wrong shade," Carol mused.  "And h ow the hell did a table get involved  with you in the first place?"  She reached up and started poking around his face to check on him.

"I don't know how makeup works," Nines explained as he let her poke at his face, "I felt like this was better than my two very black eyes."  He often wore it as a teenager, but he was rarely the one to apply it. He was told he rarely did a well enough job to hide the marks. It seemed even years later that truth still held.

"Well, clearly," Carol said, examining her friend and coworker's face. "Alright you're telling me everything and if you leave a single thing out, so help me I will not bring in your favorite  blended coffee for you today and you look like you need it. "

"I started a bar fight with the guy who got me kicked out of Jericho," Nines started casually, "A table was thrown at my face and I got arrested. Oh, and I think the guy also lied about texting me for a date afterward." He explained the absolutely ridiculous story as quickly as possible. 

"Well, damn he really did a number on you," Carol winced at the damage.  Two black eyes, a swollen and busted lip, she wouldn’t have been surprised if an x-ray showed a hairline fracture on his cheekbone from the way it was swollen. Then what Nines said completely sunk in. She stared at him flabbergasted. “He asked you out on a date after he blacked your eyes?” she asked her tone flat and disbelieving. 

Nines exhaled a sigh.  Trying his best to not meet Carol’s piercing brown eyes. "I think it's probably a good thing he didn't text me." He sounded a little pathetic as he said it. "Probably not a good idea to date the guy that you've broken the nose of."

Carol gave him a  horrified look. "Nines, he broke your face. Why the fuck do you sound disappointed that a man that beat your face in, didn’t text you about seeing you again?” She was trying to keep her voice down as they were still in the middle of the hospital. She shook her head as she started leading him towards the breakroom.

"Who knows? I don't expect anything," He said simply,  not wanting to get into that there was probably a lot wrong with him. He needed to change the subject.  "But in the meantime, do you think you could help me with my face? I don't want to scare the patients."

Carol  didn’t like how Nines immediately avoided the top but forced a  chuckle at her friend. "Sure, you're lucky I thought to keep around a concealer for you just in case.  You never manage to buy the right colour." She led him into the backroom to get that 3 shades too dark foundation off and get him set up.  She really hoped nothing bad would come of this.

~

"And that's how it happened," Gavin finally finished after Tina demanded he starts from the beginning and not leave a single thing out. It had been two weeks and he'd chickened out on texting Nines. God, why was this so fucking hard?  The tall Abeta had looked so excited about the prospect of hanging out with him.

"And you haven't texted him?" Tina accused him as everything finally settled in her brain. This was wild, but then again so was Gavin.  She was almost relieved he hadn't if she was being honest with herself.

"No... I chickened out," he lowered his head in shame. He was such a fucking coward.

Tina whistled and shook her head. "Damn, he sure as fuck thinks you were leading him on. Or playing a cruel joke on him."  Hell, it was probably a cruel joke to both of them.

Gavin groaned.  _ "I knoooow! _ God, I'm such a fucking pussy! He's just so hot!"

Tina groaned, "If you're gonna text him. Fucking text that tall beefcake and you ask his ass out." She pointed a finger at him. "Or you text him and apologize for leading him on and let it go.  And maybe mention that this is all a horrible idea and that you shouldn’t try to date people you beat the shit out and have publicly embarrassed."

Gavin  laughed nervously. She had a point, but he opted to ignore it. "But what if it was all in my head or he hates me ‘cuz I waited so long?" The whole reason why he hadn't texted him was that he was too nervous for his own good! Doubts had filled his mind and ran wild.

Tina leveled him with a serious look, "Well, there's only one way to find out. And you best be getting it over with. Because waiting longer is not the solution you need."  She didn't know why she was encouraging this. This whole fucking situation was madness, but then again it was Gavin. Netting someone he was willing to date though a bar fight seemed oddly fitting.

Gavin knew Tina was right. She was always right! Like hell, he'd ever admit it though. 

"Alright I'll text him," he sighed trying to think of something to say. 

_ Hey it's Gavin. Sorry for not getting back to you sooner, I was really busy at work! _

No, he had to be truthful.

_ hey it's Gavin. I'm sorry I never texted you that night. I was too nervous because you're so hot I could cry. _

No, too desperate!

_ Hey, it's Gavin Reed. Remember me? I'm sorry I never texted you that night. I was nervous, but it was still a crappy thing to do. If you still wanna hang out sometime and you're not too pissed at me, would you'd like to go on a date soon? No pressure! _

Okay, that's good enough.  **Send.**

"See was that so fucking hard?" Tina teased as she saw that Gavin finally sent a message.  She was still mentally preparing herself for picking up the pieces when this inevitably blew up in her best friend's face.

Gavin could only groan as he sunk down his chair trying to hide in his hoodie.

~

Nines let himself mope around for around a week before he finally decided he needed to get over himself. He felt silly for getting his hopes up. What was he supposed to do if Gavin texted him back anyway? Be like,  _ 'oh, yeah! I'm very fucking broken and I probably can't do anything you would require out of a relationship, _ _ anyway. Thank you for the interest though.' _

So, you could imagine Nines' surprise when a message rolled in almost two weeks later from Gavin. He stared at his phone and his breath caught and he felt almost dizzy. 

"Oh, fuck." He bolted up in bed. "He texted me." He saved the contact despite everything in his brain telling him not to and began the process of trying to come up with something to say.

_ N: Oh, hi. Gavin. Glad to hear from you. I was convinced you weren’t gonna message me. But I'm still up for a date if you are. _

To say Gavin was happy when he got a text back from Nines would be the understatement of the century. Gavin was chilling at Tina's place playing CoD for the millionth time and getting his ass kicked when his phone sounded off its notification noise. 

Gavin asked Tina to pause the game much to her annoyance and checked his phone. When he read it and saw who it was from, he uttered a shriek the likes of which no one had ever heard. 

Tina covered her ears to protect them from the assault of her best friend's happy shriek. "What the fuck, Gav? Warn a bitch next time! What happened?" 

Gavin was too busy smiling the biggest grin anyone had ever seen and giggling like a schoolgirl as he typed out a quick reply.  Completely ignoring Tina's inquiries. 

_ G: Omg thank you! Again I'm really sorry for keeping you waiting! How about Saturday? I know just the place! _

Nines was surprised at the speed of the response. But he was delighted at the prospect. He snuggled further in his blankets and used the warmth and safety to draw courage.

_ N: I can do Saturday night. I think I have the morning shift that day. What did you have in mind then? _

_ G: Well I was thinking we could go get dinner at a nice restaurant and see a movie! Anything you've been wanting to see? _

Nines blinked. He didn't know what was even out at the moment. 

_ N: Sure, but you pick. I don't keep up with movies XD but that does sound like a wonderful time. _

Gavin's cheeks fucking hurt from how much he was grinning at the screen as he texted Nines.

_ G: Alright I can do that! :P Shall I pick you up at your place or do you want to just meet there? _

Nines gave that some thought. He should drive just in case things went downhill,  which was more likely than not.

_ N: I'll drive and meet you there. Dinner first then the movie? _

_ G: Fine by me! And yes, I'll send you the directions to the restaurant in a bit. _

Nines smiled at the text and the address popped up. He chewed his lip and laid back down in his bed, grinning like a kid.

_ N: I can't wait. _

_ G: Me too _

Gavin made a happy noise and he brought his phone to his chest. He couldn't wait for this weekend to come.


	4. Bad Movies and Making Out

Gavin had been bugging Tina constantly that evening over video call as to what the fuck he should wear  because,  hell, if he knew anything about fashion. Eventually, they'd settled on a v-neck black shirt, his leather jacket, and a pair of jeans that made his butt look good with his combat boots.

He obsessively checked his hair, pre=fed his cats, and gathered the flowers and chocolates he bought earlier that day. The flowers were blue like Nines' eyes and the chocolates were one of those sampler boxes with different kinds of chocolates. He took his bike to the restaurant and arrived just in time for the reservation he'd made on the day Nines agreed to the date. Now it was just the waiting game. 

_ 'But what if he stands you up? What if he's allergic to chocolates or flowers? What if he thinks your outfit sucks? What if he's just pitying dating you?' _ The doubts mounted the longer he waited.

Nines dressed, well, to the nines and paced around his apartment for several minutes before he finally got the courage to leave. 

He got into his car and punched in the address t o his phone and headed that way.

He swallowed a bit nervously as he noticed where Gavin had picked out. A steakhouse, a nice one. Nines didn't usually go to places like this unless it was for a stuffy work function.  Too many bad memories. Gavin must be taking this very seriously.

Nines turned the corner at the restaurant and hummed happily until he saw Gavin and the air froze in his lungs. 

Gavin looked like a literal wet dream, one that didn't hurt. He had a box of chocolates and  big blue flowers . He blinked several times to see if it was even real. When Gavin didn't disappear, he decided to close the distance.

"Hello, Gavin. You look lovely," he greeted, sounding so much more sure than he felt, though his face was a brilliant red.  He was glad his bruises had faded by this point.

"Yeah, you too," Gavin smiled even though he felt as though he was going to die. Here Nines was looking like a model off the runway, and then there was him, a potato in a leather jacket. "I wasn't sure what type of chocolate you liked so I got a sampler of different types and these flowers reminded me of your eyes so I thought I'd give them to you as thanks for agreeing to the date even though I kept you waiting."

Nines smiled brightly and took the flowers and got a little choked up. "I think that is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me," he said probably a bit too earnestly. It was just some flowers and chocolate, but that alone made Nines' heart skip a beat.  _ Wow. _

"Really? That's a damn shame 'cuz you deserve way more than this," Gavin said, meaning every word no matter how cheesy it sounded. God, he's such a fucking sap.

Nines chuckled as he offered his hand. "If this is how I get rewarded, I may make a habit of starting bar fights." His tone was light and teasing but that's just how he was dealing with kindness. Something even after all these years he still wasn't used to it.

Gavin laughed at that. "Well, anyone who can come close to beating me in a fight is definitely worth rewarding," Gavin winked his not quite there wink. "Not gonna lie I find that trait in a man pretty sexy."

Nines chuckled and blushed even more so, to the point that if he wasn't wearing a turtleneck you could see the blush traveling to his chest. That attempt at a wink shouldn't have the most adorable thing he's ever seen.

"I'm glad I could deliver," he teased right back. "Ready to head inside?”

"Sure thing," Gavin said, opening the door for Nines. "Our table is already available since I made the reservation."

Nines perked up. "That's very thoughtful of you." Then he walked through the door that Gavin had offered and let himself take in the nice place. Who knew that something this nice could be done for him?

Gavin proceeded to walk Nines to their table and offer the Abeta to pick a place to sit before sitting down himself.  _ 'So far so good,' _ he thought.

Nines had to swallow a giggle as Gavin pulled out the chair for him and he took a seat. He smiled brightly at Gavin and he took his seat. "This is so nice, wow." He purred a tiny bit.

Gavin chuckled. "It's only fair that I am a gentleman since I did ask you out," Gavin grinned. "Besides, I like doing small things for you like this."

Nines finally let out a bubble of laughter, but it was one of excitement. He was sure he was looking at Gavin with heart eyes, "Careful, I may get used to this."

"I hope you do," Gavin attempted to wink again. Fuck, Nines was cute when he laughed. The way all of that careful control the other beta put up around himself seemed to disappear for a few seconds made Gavin's heart race. Apparently, his cheesy lines had worked on him.

_ 'Fingers crossed I don't fuck this up,' _ he thought to himself nervously.

Nines blushed brightly, "me too." He leaned onto his hand and smiled, "so, what's it like being a homicide detective? I mean. I have to talk to the police a bit at work, but never enough to ask about what happens after we can't save someone."

"Being a homicide detective is a very rewarding job most of the time, but we often see the worst society had to offer. Eventually, you get used to the various homicide cases, but the deep-rooted feeling of disgust still lingers. After nearly a decade on the force, I've pretty much seen it all. But sometimes that shit comes home with ya, y’know?"

"Oh, absolutely. I work in the trauma department of the ER. I probably see everything you do and hell, maybe worse because sometimes people think living is worse than dying," Nines said softly. "Fuck, brought this mood down really quick with my curiosity, huh?" He chuckled awkwardly.

"What? Nah! It's fine, we're both professionals who work first hand with people. We just so happen to see some fucked up shit," Gavin chuckled.

"At least we can understand that about each other's careers," Nines chirped, "which I can honestly say is a relief."

"I can only imagine how it was like telling people 'oh hi, I've worked on a patient with their face blown off from a botched suicide attempt' or 'yeah I once had to help a horny patient get a whole jar of peanut butter out of their anus'," Gavin joked. "Oddly enough I knew an omega who got desperate enough during their heat and actually did something similar except it was a whole ass melon."

Nines made a pinched face, but it was still lighthearted, "I don't usually get to work with heat and rut based problems since I'm a beta, but yes. I've heard plenty of those horror stories from my coworkers. The things people do to get off."

Gavin blushed in embarrassment. "Oh, sorry! I hope I didn't offend you or anything!"  _ Fuck!  _ He just had to bring up that kind of shit at dinner! He was such a fucking dumbass! He wouldn't be surprised if Nines just walked out right now and never spoke to him after this.

Nines chuckled. "None taken, I promise. It's just one of those things. I'm sure you understand." He did flush a bit from his own embarrassment, once again feeling like he wasn't good enough because he was an Abeta. His mother's voice echoed a bit in the back of his head, a tiny bit of panic sticking to his heart. He still wasn't good enough.

"Still though I'm really sorry about that. I'm just so used to fucked up shit like that because of my job. Sometimes I forget that it isn't normal," he chuckled sheepishly. "I guess this is why I don't have a lot of friends other than Tina."

"As I said, I work in the ER. I'm not phased by it," Nines smiled back the best he could, "You don't have to walk on eggshells around me. I'll let you know if you make me uncomfortable and I would expect the same from you. Is that okay?"

Gavin sighed in relief. "Thanks, it's definitely been a while since I've last done this." he gave a crooked smile.

Nines flushed. "Well, you're better off than me in that aspect already." Which was the best round-about way of saying this is the first time he's ever been on a date.

"Really? I don't believe that! Surely someone as sweet and handsome as you has been on several dates before this one," Gavin said in disbelief. No way someone so beautiful could've been single this whole time.

Nines broke eye contact at that, his ears turning red, both from shame and the compliment. "I... haven't." But he looked up and tried to smile, "though I guess most of that is my own doing."

Noticing the obviously strained smile, Gavin chose to change the subject. Clearly, it was a touchy subject for Nines. "Well, why don't you tell me more about yourself? What are your hobbies? I wanna know more about you."

Nines let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "Oh, okay. I uh, love to paint." He tangled his fingers together under the table. "What about you?"

"An artist, huh? That's awesome! I dabble in the arts too, but it's nothing special. I used to be a tattoo artist and I still give myself mini tattoos every so often," Gavin said as if it was nothing.

Nines eyes sparkled. "Ink, huh? Love that. I have a few myself. But I can't say I did them myself."

"I'd love to see them sometime," Gavin purred, imagining just what those fancy clothes were hiding. "I'm currently working on one of my sleeves at the moment, but by the time I'm done, I'll have both arms fully covered."

Nines swallowed and decided to continue to ignore anything sex-related. "Oh, full sleeves? That's impressive and that suits you so well, with your arms being... So..." He gestures vaguely trying to convey 'big.'

Gavin chuckled. "Don't sell yourself so short! Your arms are pretty big too, you must hit the gym on a daily." Gavin couldn't help but smile at Nines' dorkiness. It was fucking adorable.

Nines flushed and put his hand over his face to hide a little bit. "I don't work out as much as you'd think. I... just... kind of look like this, but my job has a fuck ton of heavy lifting and running... and general physical exertion."

"Well, apparently carrying around patients all day really does a body good," Gavin purred. "I'm kinda jealous, I have to hit the gym to keep these gains. Though I've been slacking recently because of a really rough case I've been dealing with having me work long hours. I mean jeez I'm developing a gut! See?" He moved back in his seat to show the bit of stomach he'd been developing. "Talk about a buddha belly right?"

Nines eyes zeroed in on Gavin's middle and his breath caught. He couldn't find one reason to complain about how Gavin looked.

A telltale bit of arousal shot through his veins and was quickly followed by a wince of pain. "I... Uh... Wouldn't call it that..." He swallowed visibly, trying not to show anything he was feeling.

Gavin quickly noticed Nines' discomfort and his tiny wince. If he hadn't been fully paying attention he wouldn't have noticed. He moves his chair back up and with a concerned look on his face. "You alright, Nines? Did my beer gut really gross you out that much?" He half-joked. He knew he should've just sucked it the whole time and not brought attention to it. _ 'Great he's grossed out by me.' _

"Oh!" Nines exclaimed, embarrassed, "No, it's not that. That's not it all. I find you very handsome... and attractive... I-I just... have... c-chronic pain." 

_ Now is not the time for that stupid stutter. He’ll hate it. _

"Oh..." Gavin said, his face was all red and he was seeing stars. He was fucked. He shook off the heart eyes and reached his hand toward the middle of the table just in case Nines wanted to hold his hand. 

"I'm so sorry to hear that, Big Guy. Anything I can do to help?" Gavin knew all too well what chronic pain did to people. His dad had arthritis in his hands before he left home at 18 for college. He missed his dad and his moms at that moment.  He shook his head, what a thing to derail on.

Nines noticed how smitten Gavin looked and that really surprised him, but then it filled his chest with warmth. He took the offered hand with a warm smile. "Not really. You just learn to live with it and that's okay. But I appreciate it. I can handle my own pretty well."

"Well, still if you ever need help with relieving the pain let me know and I'll do the best I can," Gavin smiled. If it didn't make him sound like a repressed virgin, he'd say that feeling Nines' hand in his was one of the best feelings in the world, and fuck he didn't wanna let go.

Nines smiled a bit sadly, "Thanks. That means a lot. Most people would be cringing at the idea of dealing with someone who hurts all the time." He sighed happily, "But you seem pretty special to me."  Compassion was one of the first things he’d heard from Gavin, even though it was aggressive.

"I could say the same about you," Gavin said affectionately. "Not gonna lie, when I first saw you, I thought you were the hottest guy I had ever seen. I kept sneaking peeks at you and everything. In hindsight, I probably wasn't being subtle." Gavin blushed, smiling sheepishly.

Nines chuckled and his unoccupied hand went to his face. "Well, I did notice, but only because I was doing the same thing."

Gavin giggled. "Wow, and here I thought I was the same acne-ridden loser I was in high school who had no chance with his crush."

"Me too. Then I was an asshole and we beat the shit out of each other," Nines teased. "Seems like a great story for later."

"It ain't the most conventional 'how did we first meet' story, but since when have I been conventional? I'm a beta for fucks sake!" He laughed.

"That's fair," Nines commented, "I'm just glad we worked out our differences. So, uh, what are we eating?" He changed the subject away from gender.

"Jesus that reminds me, where the fuck is the waiter? We haven't even been asked for drinks yet," Gavin questioned irritably. "Bitches haven't eaten since breakfast, I'm bitches!"

Nines chuckled loudly, "I don't... Think we told anyone we are here. We were too occupied with each other. Want me to go say something?"

"Nah, I'll do it. It's under my name anyway," Gavin got up from his chair straightening himself up. "I'll be right back!" He made his way to the hostess desk.

Nines nodded and then his eyes followed Gavin as he walked and his brain nearly short-circuited as his eyes went to where Gavin's pants were hugging his ass. He twinged as his mouth dried up.

"Fuck," he said quietly under his breath.

Gavin walked back a moment later and sat back greeting his date with a smile. "Okay, so I explained everything to the hostess, and thank god she was understanding so she wrote us in at our scheduled time. We should be getting a waitress coming by any second. God, I'm dumb."

Nines smiled and shook his head, "Nah, we were just giving each other big old heart eyes and forgot about everything else. That happens to the best of us."

Gavin chuckled and placed his hand back in his date's. "I guess you're right! You're so good to me," he said, returning Nines' smile.

Nines smiled and cocked his head a little to give off the message he was interested in, but then again instincts were a bit lost on him. "I try my best."

Then before Gavin could finish their waitress appeared. "Hey, I'm sorry about that wait. I'm Wendy and I'll be your server today. What can I get for you two to drink? And to eat if you're ready."

"Uh, yes! What wine do you recommend for a nice medium-rare 8 oz sirloin steak?" Gavin inquired before turning to Nines. "That is if you want a glass of wine?"

Nines nodded, "I can drink a glass." 

He turned to the waitress and flashed a blinding smile. He'd been raised by money, he knew how to act properly and the best wine to pair with a steak. He hadn't gone to finishing school for anything. "I'll take the same, but a little more on the rare side of that medium-rare. And I think a Cabernet Sauvignon would be most suitable?"

The waitress giggled, "sounds perfect. I'll have that right out." Then she bounced away.

Gavin raised his eyebrows. Damn this man knew what he was talking about. "I have no idea what you just said, but I'll trust your judgment!" He had bagged a bougie bitch on top of a big one. He had no problem with this.

Nines flushed, "No problem. It's just a red wine one that pairs best with steak. I wanted to save you just in case she didn't know, because well, I already knew the answer. But I'm excited I haven't had wine in a little while."

"I mean, hey, if you know it, flaunt it," Gavin said with a big grin. "Ain't no shame in that!"

Nines grinned back, Gavin seemed like he could make even the most horrible things so lovely. "Oh, yes. I'll make sure to keep that in mind. So, want to teach me more about learning how to do tattoos?"

The rest of the dinner went by wonderfully. They talked and got to know each other a lot better and the food and wine were perfect. But Nines was quite a bit sad when they had to take separate cars to the theater, but thankfully the drive was only about two miles. 

Nines hoped out of his car and quickly found Gavin. "Hello, handsome."

Gavin hopped off his bike taking off his helmet before placing it on the bike. "Well, hello, hot stuff," he purred as he walked over to his date. "Ready?"

Nines had to convince Gavin sometime in the future for him to take him out on that bike. "Absolutely, nice bike by the way." He offered his hand once again for Gavin to hold.

To which the obeta gladly took. "Thanks, Big Guy. We should take a ride on it sometime, if ya want to that is," Gavin knew the abeta had some issues with boundaries and physical affection so he'd been making a point to constantly ask for consent or wait to be granted consent for anything.

Nines was sure his eyes were sparkling. "I'd love that. I've always wanted to. Even after all the shit, I've seen." He led them inside and gently ran a thumb over Gavin's knuckles.

Gavin was the happiest man alive as Nines led him into the theater. If he were in a Saturday morning cartoon he'd be floating in mid hair just following this man wherever he chose to go. "Any place, any time, babe," he said around a dopey grin.

Nines blushed and laughed a little bit. "As you wish," he stopped in front of the ticket kiosk and looked towards Gavin, "so? What are we going to watch today?"

"Well... I was thinking we could see that one," he pointed at a poster with an image of a sinister middle-aged man with a beard covered in blood with a big spooky mansion in the background. The title was written in blood-red font.  _ Zlatko. _ "I heard from Tina that this one was a doozy when she went to see it with the chick she's dating."

Nines eyed the poster skeptically. "Okay... Let's get those tickets." He smiled. 

It looked like a damn scary movie and he wasn't a fan of horror, but he wasn't going to back down and make himself look like a pussy.

Gavin looked up at his date when he hesitated. "Hey, we don't have to see this if you don't want to. We could just watch a shitty rom-com and laugh at it," Gavin asked gently in his omega voice.

Nines bristled a tiny bit. "Nah, it’s cool. Like I keep saying these things are nothing compared to what I deal with on a daily basis. Let's go." He could do one horror movie. What are the odds of it having one of his three triggers?

"If you say so... two tickets to  _ Zlatko,  _ please?" Gavin asked the ticket kiosk lady. He paid with his card and followed Nines to the concession stand where they got the largest drinks and a large popcorn to share there. 

The two found the theater playing the movie and found decent seats and proceeded to talk more about Gavin's tattoos and how he does them.

Nines followed Gavin easily and just focused on him more than the idea that he was going to watch a horror film. "You keep flexing those arms and I won't be watching much of the movie," he joked teasingly.

"Well, if ya get scared these arms are open," Gavin teased back.

"Okay, I may take you up on that offer," Nines assured as the previews started up and his eyes were drawn to the screen. He reached out and grabbed Gavin's hand. Something he caught himself doing a lot.

As the previews played Gavin squeezed his date's hand and rubbed it with his thumb to show he wasn't ignoring him. So far so good!

Nines hummed as the movie started and he watched with rapt attention. His skin crawled as time progressed, but it didn't look like the movie was going to be too horrible.

The screen turned to a young woman in a white top and black leggings who had arrived at the residence she was hired to clean. It was a two-story Victorian home in rough shape on what appeared to be in the outskirts of Detroit. 

The first thing she was greeted with upon entering was a home littered with beer bottles, takeout boxes, and a carpet littered with stains of questionable origin. For the first few minutes, she went about her chores and attempted to connect with the shy daughter of her employer to no avail. She brought the crusty clothes from off on the line back inside to be rewashed when she found a baggy of powder in the laundry detergent box. 

In true jumpscare fashion, her employer forcefully turns the woman around and yanks her off her feet by her neck demanding she mind her business or else. In a panic, she tries to appease the man and he lets her go and storms off with the bag. 

"Fucking immigrants!" The man muttered as he left.

Nines jumped at the violent reaction from the man about the hidden drugs. He snuggled closer to Gavin and tried not to look too off-put by the movie, and moving closer seemed like a great idea. 

He also guessed that was part of why Gavin picked a scary movie.

Gavin squeezed his hand reassuringly as well as snuggled up to Nines so he could be more comfortable and safe. To say he was loving the cuddles would be the biggest understatement of the century.

The scene then changes to later that night to the woman presenting dinner to the man and his daughter. Things soon took a turn for the worst as the obviously high father started on an angry tirade to his daughter accusing her of thinking she's too good for him and blaming her for his shitty life. 

It escalates like that until he ends up slapping the girl across the face, causing her to cry and run up to her room. The man completely blows up and goes on a massive rant while throwing shit around in the kitchen.

Nines froze when he heard the way the dad was talking, he knew where the scene was heading before it even turned sour. But that didn't make watching it any easier and he stopped breathing as he was forcibly trying to stop himself from having a flashback. 

Fuck, he couldn't have  _ another  _ breakdown in front of Gavin. He was trying to make a good impression. He liked this guy. He didn't need him thinking he was just an emotional pup. But here he was freaking the fuck out over a stupid horror movie.

The nanny was frozen still in fear. She knew what that man was capable of. He'd beaten her to a bloody pulp before and he would do it again. But if she did nothing, the girl would suffer the same fate and possibly get killed.

She had to make a choice and so she did. She snuck up the stairs as stealthily as possible. She suddenly remembered the gun the father kept in his bedside drawer and took it before making her way into the terrified little girl's room crying in her little pillow fort. 

"He'll hurt you again... he'll hurt us!" She sobbed. The nanny walked over to the child and comforted her saying that they needed to get out of there.

However, before the nanny could find a safe way out, the father barged in to see the nanny and his daughter trying to escape. The nanny pulled out the gun and commanded him to leave the little girl alone, but that only resulted in the man threatening to beat her worse than he ever had before, tell the cops she threatened him and his daughter with a gun and get her deported. 

When she didn't back down and went to shoot him, he attacked her. He threw her across the room and attempted to kill her. She tried to escape from him and retrieve the gun she dropped but he didn't relent and just as he was on top of her strangling the life out of her. A gunshot was heard and he dropped right on top of her dead.

The nanny pushed him off of her only to see the little girl with the gun with tears cascading down her face. The nanny took the girl by the hand and they proceed to run down the stairs and out of the house to catch the bus

Nines flinched and screwed his eyes shut as soon as the nanny grabbed the gun. Not liking where this was going in the slightest. 

Nope. He wasn't going to watch any more of this movie. And every time there was a loud bang on the screen he would jerk back.

Gavin felt a jolt in the seat next to him and looked over to a scared and crying Nines. "Nines... Are you okay? Do you wanna leave?" He whispered to Nines in deep concern and worry.

Hearing Gavin's voice pulled him out of himself and he suddenly noticed he was a mess. His hands quickly went to scrub at his face, trying to get rid of the evidence of his breakdown. "If you're not too upset by that fact... That would probably be best..." He whispered back sheepishly and much more put together than he expected it to be.

"No, it's fine! Come on, let's get out of here," Gavin took their drinks and led Nines out of the dark movie theater. 

On their way out of the row, a few people yelled at them for getting in the way and as a response, he told them to go fuck themselves. Nines was all that mattered right now.

When they made it out of the door of the theater Nines covered his face a little bit. "God, I'm so embarrassed," he muttered as he made a beeline to the parking lot.

Gavin threw the drinks and popcorn in the trash and ran after him. By the time Gavin had made it to Nines car, he was already in it sobbing and damn close to another panic attack.

Nines hadn't meant to leave Gavin in the dust but having a breakdown was something he'd rather do in privacy than in the middle of a cinema lobby. But Gavin made it to the car and joined him. He began a mantra of, 'I'm sorrys.'

"No, baby, no... you didn't do a thing wrong," he assured the bigger man using his omega voice to soothe him. "It was my fault for making us see that stupid movie. I'm sorry Nines, had I'd known the movie would have domestic violence in it, I wouldn't have picked it I swear!"

Gavin knew he'd fucked up real good this time. He just  _ had _ to take Nines to a flick where people were being abused! He'd had a suspicion that the abeta had been abused in the past after the first panic attack he went through in the holding cell, but this had solidified it for him. Why couldn't he do anything right?

Nines blinked and looked at Gavin seriously. He shook his head. "No, it's okay. Really," he insisted, "I just wanted to look like a tough guy. I really, really should have looked up my triggers the second I knew it was a horror movie. And now I've gone and embarrassed myself."

"You wouldn't have even gone through that if I hadn't gotten the bright idea to see a horror movie so I could get some scared cuddles out of you. I could've picked another movie playing," Gavin sighed, running a hand down his face.

Nines chuckled a little bit at that. "I mean it was a very sound tactic in theory. I'm just... sensitive." He reached over and hesitated before he touched Gavin's face for a caress, silently asking for permission. "But I will say there are easier and more sure ways to get cuddles. Like asking?"

Gavin gave Nines a small smile and nodded. Giving the Abeta all the permission he'd ever need. He could have anything he wanted. Maybe even his soul if this kept this up.

Nines sighed and reached out and caressed Gavin's cheek. The touch shot a warm feeling up his arm. "I'm still sorry about the movie, but I will stick with my opinion that this night has been wonderful." 

_ Please, don't run away, I want this to work. _

The obeta leaned into the touch and purred on instinct. He still felt horrible about all of this, but if this beautiful creature saw some worth in a screw up like him then maybe it would be okay. He gingerly moved his hand into Nines' vicinity silently asking to return the favor.

Nines leaned into the touch with a soft smile. He really hadn't expected the soft purr from Gavin, but he found himself loving it. 

"I promise it's okay." His soft voice was one he often used to calm people down at work, he hoped it translated here as well.

"Okay... just please tell me this stuff next time, please. I worry," Gavin said looking into Nines' eyes with the most vulnerable face he's ever dared to show anyone. He didn't know what it was about this guy that made him weak, but as if on a deadly addictive drug, he was hooked.

"Okay, I'll try to remember that," Nines soothed. "I'm just a bit too stubborn for my own good." He took a deep shaky breath to get the last little bit of fear to dislodge from his chest.

This was nice, but Gavin needed more. He desperately wanted to be close to Nines but was really unsure of how to ask. He blushed, avoiding eye contact as he stumbled through his question. "You think we could, uh, do what we were going to before the movie got too scary?" He hoped Nines would pick up on what he meant.

Nines tilted his head, having to give that question some thought. "Are you... asking to cuddle?"

Gavin's face only got redder. "... yeah," he said softly, feeling embarrassed.

Nines smiled.  _ Holy fuck, _ that was adorable. "Sure, I think we can do that." He opened one of his arms in invitation. His own heart hammering in excitement.

Gavin practically pounced on Nines as he moved to be in Nines’ arms and wrapped his arms around the abeta's neck as he placed his face in his neck. The taller man's scent was even better up close than it was from a few feet away. 

"You smell good..." Gavin mumbled into his date's neck.

Nines let out a tiny  _ 'oof' _ as Gavin jumped Into his arms, wrapping Nines up and breathing him in.

Fuck, that did things for him. He felt a bit of pain shoot through him and he wiggled a bit to get comfortable. He leaned his nose towards Gavin's scent glands and took his own deep breath. He was quickly overwhelmed by how wonderful Gavin's dark chocolate scent was. "You smell... delicious. "

Gavin emitted a low chuckle. "You actually wouldn't have been the first to tell me that," Gavin said into his ear. "You smell fucking great too. Like freshly cut cedar..."

Nines groaned, his head rolling to the side slightly. The sound started sexual but slowly morphed into pain. Though the change was unnoticeable unless someone was really paying attention. He fucking hated his body sometimes. 

He turned his attention away from the pain this was causing and focused instead on how good Gavin felt. "I'm... I'm... glad you like it...  _ Fuck..." _

It was all fun and games teasing Nines, but in all reality, he had no intention of fucking on the first date. Gavin Xavier Reed might be a lot of things, but a classless hoe was not one of them. 

Okay, he was a bit of a hoe... but he had some class! Plus he really respected this man and wanted their first time to be special. "Sorry... it's just you smell so good and you're so sweet, just couldn't help myself," he smiled sheepishly.

Nines blinked and looked at Gavin after he pulled away. "That's okay. I'm flattered really. You're really amazing yourself as well.”

Then he broke eye contact, "uh... But I just... I'm not sure how much further I could... comfortably take... things."  _ Smooth. _

Gavin's eyes widened. "OH!  _ Nonononnono! _ I don't do...that on the first date, well, a-at least not with you! No, that came out wrong!" He groaned. "I really like you and I respect you too much to move that fast on the first date, I promise..." 

If that wasn't the biggest gay panic of his life, he didn't know what else could possibly top it.  _ Fuck. _

Nines blinked. "Uh?" He cocked his head, giving away his confusion. "There wasn't a doubt in my mind about you respecting me or not... I mean..." He chewed his lip, "I-I can't... really have any... type of s-sex... comfortably... at all?" 

Fuck he felt so stupid, his stutter and all. He waved his hands around for a moment. "Chronic pain... and all that... j-jazz."

Gavin let the sink in for a few seconds before it finally clicked. "Oh, that's it?" He asked as if it was no big deal. "I mean it makes sense now that I think about it, but nah that doesn't change anything."

"I'm sorry, I should have..." Then Nines stopped his already prepared apology and just stared. "Y-you're... not mad?" 

That didn't make sense, Gavin should be pissed. He's clearly interested in him sexually and dating has expectations of sex and Nines just drug him around on this date and found out he couldn't have sex... and isn't mad? It didn't make any sense.

Now Gavin was confused. "Why would I be mad? It's not your fault that you have chronic pain surrounding your dick. Besides, I like you for you, not for how good you would be in bed. Sex is cool, but I care more about the person than sex."

Nines made a very confused face. "Well... It's actually just... pain in general, not anything specific to my genitals," he lied, "Are you sure you can be… okay... with this if this does go... long term?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Just because we can't have sex, don't we can't do other shit right? We can still kiss and cuddle up in bed or on the sofa while watching Netflix, right?"

Nines just stared at Gavin for a few moments, completely not believing what he was saying. 

"We...  _ could... _ do that," he said it like it just wasn't a thing that was possible. Like it was some ridiculous notion.

Gavin got a determined look on his face. "What do I gotta do to prove I'm for real?" He was never the one to back down from a challenge and he'd be damned if he didn't prove to this perfect man that he was worth loving and that sex wasn't everything.

Nines turned a dark red. "The only way to prove that would be... to stay."

The obeta then smiled and wrapped his arms back around Nines' neck. "Good, cuz you're not getting rid of me anytime soon," he purred mischievously.

"Okay," Nines said, his voice shaky from emotion. "I think I'd like that, a lot actually." This almost felt too good to be true, but he would take it. Have as much of this feeling as he could get before it was gone. He could be selfish this one time.

Gavin leaned in until his face was only a few inches from Nines' face. Their lips were so close to touching. "Can I kiss you?" The shorter man asked gently. His heart was pounding out of his chest and his cheeks were flushed a bright red.

Nines didn't answer verbally, he instead just leaned forward those mere few inches and pressed their lips together. He hummed happily.

The obeta immediately reciprocated, deepening the kiss by tilting his head and pulling Nines closer. He couldn't get close enough as the kiss quickly multiplied into several and before they both knew it, the two were making out inside of Nines' car.

Nines didn't know kissing could be so fucking nice. Nice, minus the constant feeling of pain shooting through his body at random, but that did eventually fade out into just a constant dull ache. 

He tangled his hands into Gavin's hair and tried to give as good as he was getting. He wasn't exactly sure how well he was doing, but he didn't seem to care either.

Gavin moaned and purred into the kiss. Nines licked his lips, asking for permission in, and it was granted. They fought for control until, unlike the bar fight, Nines won. 

Shit, if Gavin had known Nines was this great of a kisser he'd have asked him out sooner!

Gavin gave everything he was and then some.

Nines felt himself melting and his fight slowly falling into the burning desire to submit. His body went limp in a way that said that Gavin could do as he pleased because he had the strong feeling that the obeta wouldn't take advantage of that submission.

The ever-growing submission of his partner and the way he clung onto him for dear life lit a flame of love and desire in Gavin that he didn't think could ever go out. The two lovebirds slowly leaned back until Gavin was on top of Nines giving the abeta only the best because this perfect man deserves nothing less.

Once Gavin climbed onto Nines' lap he broke the kiss with a slight hiss. He blinked and choked down some air. "We... We should..." He paused the pant unsure of what they should do actually.

Gavin immediately backed off as soon as he heard the hiss of pain. "We can stop if you want or just slow it back down if you're uncomfortable?" He suggested not wanting to push Nines too far.

"I mean, I want to continue. I just don't think I can?" Nines whispered. Guilt and shame sneaking up on his fragile emotions.

Gavin gave a reassuring smile and touched the abeta's face. "That's fine, we can just stay here and chill until they kick us off of the premises if you want," he chuckled.

Nines smiled softly. "How did I get so lucky?" He kissed him once again. "I uh, do have work tomorrow, so maybe let's not stay out that long?"

"I should be saying that to you," Gavin said playfully in between kisses. "And yeah I know you're a very busy man taking care of people. It was more of a suggestion than anything. Besides this is your night. Your wish is my command."

Nines smiled brightly. "Well, maybe we could snuggle here a little longer, but there's a small catch." He giggled but sped up at seeing a tiny bit of fear flash in Gavin's eyes. "You gotta do it as my official boyfriend?"

Gavin's whole face lit up at the mention of being Nines' boyfriend. He had to suppress a loud squeal of happiness as he pulled the larger man into a big hug chirping happily.

"Yes! Of course! Your wish is granted!" He was a giggly gay puddle of a man, but damn it he couldn't find it in him to care. Right now all he cared about was cuddling with his new boyfriend.

Nines let out his own excited chirping and basked in Gavin's happiness at the notion. 

"Wow, I'm so happy right now," he said with the biggest grin imaginable. He returned the cuddles and just basked in the warm and happy aura they had around them.

"Me too," Gavin said into Nines' neck which had quickly become his happy place. 

The two stayed cuddled up like that and talking until they both reluctantly parted ways promising to see each other soon and text each other when they got home safely. Nines teased Gavin about actually texting him this time to which the obeta laughed kissing on it that he would. 

They both ended up getting 'home safe' and 'goodnight' texts before both of them went to sleep dreaming sweet dreams of each other.


End file.
